Bye Bye Blackbirds

Birds in nest and nature's course

Every day I go for a walk around the rice fields behind my mother's home. I can walk along the dirt roads that the farmers use to check their crops for miles and miles endlessly around rice fields that are taking root. The pleasure of seeing nature take its course and farmers working steadily with the season.  The blackberry vines are growing wildly as they should, and I have spotted and noted the ones I can reach to gather for my mother's blackberry pies.

 

 

Birds in nest and nature's course

 

Sacha pointed out the red wing crow's nest that was brilliantly nestled in the reeds alongside the canal.

As it was surrounded by water it was hard to take a photo and or to see if there were eggs inside.

But Sacha managed to lean in and see that there were three eggs.

 

 

Birds in nest and nature's course

 

From that day last Saturday, I walked the three miles to their nest to see if they had hatched and how they were fairing.

"Females will incubate the eggs (sit on the nest and keep the eggs warm until they hatch) while the male guards the nest. The female incubates the eggs for 11 to 13 days. Chicks fledge (are able to fly) in 10 to 14 days and are independent in 2 to 3 weeks"

 

 

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Three little birdies hatched Sunday.

What a pleasure to see them grow each day. They endured some might winds, rain, and unusually cold weather for this time of year.

 

 

Birds in nest and nature's course

 

Yesterday they had little feathers.

They became my symbol of new life, for a new tomorrow.

They made my steps going towards them giddy as I wanted to see their growth.

 

 

Birds in nest and nature's course

 

The disappointment of finding this misfortune today. I had hoped to see them fill out, feather fluff and fly away.

 

 

Birds in nest and nature's course

 

Nature has its ways. Life does too.

Understandable or not.

Unfair and beautiful,

full of richness and misfortune

it carries on and so do we.

Bye bye Blackbird.



Comments

11 responses to “Bye Bye Blackbirds”

  1. Beautiful! I resonate with this post. For the first time in my life there’s someone who wants to marry me and who I want to marry. And my Dad won’t give him permission. He says he’s too old. I’m 34. He’s 59. “unfair and beautiful…full of richness and misfortune” that is love, and family, and life. “it carries on and so do we” Thank you for being there for all of us on our journeys. What would we do without you.

  2. The eggs were so beautiful!

  3. Gail Dawson-White

    The nest you have been watching is that of a red wing blackbird. They are common in all flat wet lands in America. We have them in Pennsylvania. Their song is “purple rain”. They migrate south in autumn.

  4. I am sorry to see this. We have bluebirds in one of our birdhouses and I hope the little ones stay safe.
    Julie, may I be so bold as to say you don’t need your dad’s permission to marry and also that he is right, your beau is too old. I married an older man. Doesn’t make much difference at your ages now, but will make a big difference in 10 yrs and more.

  5. We have dozens of redwinged blackbirds here, many of them in the reeds around the dugout and slough right behind our house. A bird expert I heard on the radio said these and many other wild birds will raise three or even four hatches of babies each spring and summer, but that due to predation and other problems (one parent is killed or injured, for instance, so the other is unable to keep the babies fed), only 7% survive to adulthood. Birds have a hard life, don’t they. -Kate

  6. this really affected me….

  7. Diogenes

    Sigh. So sad for black bird mom, who worked hard to grow them! We have hummingbirds that regularly nest in our ficus trees, under the patio roof. We had one batch do just fine in January, then with a second batch in the same nest in April, some predator got them. I have no idea what. One minute they were there, the next they were gone. The nest was in tact, but the babies were nowhere to be seen…and just a few days from being able to fly. Hummingbird mom then took the nest apart over the course of a couple weeks.

  8. Julie, Your Dad is correct, he is much too old for you. I married a man 14 years older than myself and it does become a problem as you age. Statistics state you will outlive him , are you prepared to be a single parent or perhaps all alone in another 20 years? No one knows what the future holds but you can think carefully about your decisions now to help guide it.

  9. 😪😪😪

  10. LeighNZ

    I find it difficult to cope with things like this, I’m with you g…so very sad and upsetting XX

  11. Oh, I was so excited for you to have this goal in your walk each day. But then so sad to read the final destruction of the nest. How sad!

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